Rec Life will host a mountain biking trip Thursday, Feb. 16, along the Iron Mountain trial near Lake Degray in the Caddo Valley area.
Bikers will meet at 3:30 p.m. in the upper SPEC parking lot, outside the climbing and rental center. The bikes will be loaded onto a trailer and the group will drive to the biking trail. The trip will last approximately two and a half hours with participants returning to campus around 6 p.m.
Students wishing to participate must sign up online at obu.edu/reclife. The deadline to signup is Wednesday, Feb. 15.
People are encouraged to bring their own bikes if possible, but bikes and helmets will be available to rent from the Rec Life center for free. Due to the limited number, equipment will be rented on a first come, first serve basis. If a student or faculty would like to rent a bike, outside of this event, the cost will be $3 a day.
Those interested in attending this event do not need to be experts or super fit. In fact, you do not have to have any qualifications to join the activity. “If you are comfortable riding a bike around campus, then you can come…that’s all the experience needed,” Rec Life director, Shane Seaton said.
The trail will be around five to eight miles. The trails of Lake Degray are specially made for mountain biking, so there will not be any steep or difficult sections. “It’s a really great set of mountain biking trails…they made it a little more gradual uphill for [bikers],” Seaton said. “It’s Arkansas mountain-biking, so it’s not like ‘Oh man, that’s a huge mountain!’”
Seaton also mentions how beautiful the trail is. “Periodically we stop along the way to see the view. The trail goes right along the lake in places…It’s challenging and relaxing all at the same time,” he said.
This is the second time Rec life has hosted this particular trip. Seaton says that he enjoys the opportunity for other’s to experience this hobby. “It was just great getting new people out and letting them experience new things. Some of the people [from the previous trip] had never mountain biked before,” he said.
Seaton encourages first timers to come on this trip. “If you’ve always thought about mountain biking but have never done it, this is a great introduction to it,” he said. Seaton will be there instructing bikers, which will provide a great environment to learn.
To sign up for the mountain biking or to learn more about any other upcoming Rec Life events, visit obu.edu/reclife or contact Shane Seaton at seatons@obu.edu.
– By AJ Stambolie, student writer
